The English Enlightenment: Algernon Sidney and John Locke

Algernon Sidney and John Locke were (together with Benedictus de Spinoza and Samuel von Pufendorf) among the earliest advocates of the central tenets of the Enlightenment, i.e., reliance on Reason, respect for the Moral Law, and active engagement to expand people’s Freedom and Rights. Sidney and Locke shared a common antagonist in Sir Robert Filmer, whose posthumously published tract, Patriarcha, defended absolutism by reference to Scripture. Both men demanded a greater role for parliament and, for Locke in particular, liberal politics entailed (a limited form of) religious toleration. Both men wrote that kings and governments should be accountable to the people, rather than the reverse, and justified popular resistance to a king who abused his power. They appealed to Universal Reason (or Natural Law) to support their arguments for political freedom and greater rights for people.